Blog > Best Month to Sell a House in Palo Alto: 14 Years of Sales, Month by Month
Best Month to Sell a House in Palo Alto: 14 Years of Sales, Month by Month
by
When do Palo Alto homes sell best? We sorted the 6,535 Palo Alto sales that closed from January 2012 through December 2025, as reported to the MLS with repeat records removed, by the month they closed. March closings sold over asking most often: in an average year, 72.8% of them went over, against 40.2% of January closings.
The short answer
- Most bidding: March closings (72.8% sold over asking, median sale-to-list 107.2%), then May (70.3%) and April (65.5%).
- Least bidding: January (40.2% over asking, median sale-to-list 99.3%), then December (53.2%).
- Price per square foot: highest against the same year’s median in April (+3.1%) and lowest in January (−8.5%).
- Busiest month: May, with 10.8% of a typical year’s closings; the slowest is January (3.8%).
- Seasons: March–May closings averaged 69.5% over asking, September–November 62.7% and December–February 52.4%.
- Timing a listing: closing usually comes about a month after the accepted offer, and the home was on the market before that, so a March closing typically means an accepted offer in February, with the listing before that.
Month by month
Each figure is worked out year by year for the month, then averaged over 2012–2025, so a hot year like 2021 or a cool one like 2023 counts once. The strongest month is in bold.
| Closing month | Sold over asking | Median sale-to-list | Price/sq ft vs. that year | Share of year’s sales | Sales, 2012–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 40.2% | 99.3% | −8.5% | 3.8% | 250 |
| February | 63.7% | 105.2% | −1.1% | 4.7% | 306 |
| March | 72.8% | 107.2% | +0.2% | 9.2% | 594 |
| April | 65.5% | 105.5% | +3.1% | 9.8% | 644 |
| May | 70.3% | 105.5% | +0.5% | 10.8% | 703 |
| June | 64.2% | 104.4% | −0.1% | 10.1% | 664 |
| July | 58.1% | 102.8% | −2.7% | 9.0% | 589 |
| August | 63.4% | 104.1% | −1.2% | 8.8% | 579 |
| September | 62.7% | 103.8% | 0.0% | 8.0% | 524 |
| October | 65.0% | 104.1% | +2.4% | 10.2% | 667 |
| November | 60.4% | 102.3% | +0.4% | 8.7% | 580 |
| December | 53.2% | 102.7% | −3.5% | 6.7% | 435 |
If you’re buying
The flip side: January closings went over asking least often (40.2%) and sold at −8.5% per square foot against the year’s median, the lowest of any month. The catch is choice. January brings only 3.8% of a typical year’s closings, against 10.8% in May.
Reading it right
- Closing month isn’t listing month. The calendar is by closing date, which trails the offer by about a month.
- Averages, not a promise. Any one year can break the pattern, and the homes for sale and buyers in your price range at the time matter too.
- The mix changes. Different homes sell in different months, so part of a month’s price per square foot is which homes sold, not only demand.
- All home types. Houses, condos and townhomes are counted together.
- Not a forecast or the value of any one home.
How we counted
Closed sales reported to the MLS in Palo Alto, January 2012 to December 2025: houses, condos and townhomes, with repeat records removed and sales under 50% or over 200% of list left out. For each closing month, the share sold over asking and the median sale-to-list ratio are worked out year by year (a month needs at least 8 sales in a year to count) and then averaged. Price per square foot is each month’s median against the same year’s median, averaged across years. Sales share is the share of each year’s sales that closed in that month, averaged across years with 60 or more sales.
Go deeper
Best Month to Sell shows this calendar for every city we cover. Before you list, the Prep Lab helps get the house ready, the Launch Lab plans how it goes on the market, and the Seller Playbook walks through the whole sale. For Palo Alto, see where homes sell over asking, neighborhood by neighborhood; the Palo Alto city guide links every guide, and our sales map shows the homes we’ve sold there.
Common questions
What is the best month to sell a house in Palo Alto?
By closing month, March. In an average year from 2012 to 2025, 72.8% of Palo Alto sales that closed in March went over asking, the most of any month, against 40.2% in January. Closing usually comes about a month after the accepted offer, so the listing goes up earlier.
When is the best time to buy a house in Palo Alto?
If you want less competition, January: closings that month went over asking least often (40.2%) and sold at −8.5% per square foot against the year’s median. The trade-off is choice, since January brings only 3.8% of a typical year’s closings.
Do Palo Alto homes sell for more in spring?
They draw more bidding: March–May closings went over asking 69.5% of the time on average, against 52.4% for December–February. Part of the gap is which homes sell in each season, not only demand.
The Palo Alto data series: housing market by the numbers · neighborhoods ranked by price per sq ft · where homes sell over asking · ten years of prices by neighborhood · condos and townhomes · house prices by bedrooms · houses under $3M · houses at $5M and up · our sales map
Planning a sale in Palo Alto?
A Property Nerd can show what homes like yours have sold for, month by month, and build your prep and launch around the season. Call (408) 373-1660 or (650) 383-8606, or book a strategy call. Commissions are negotiable, and we offer bundled services, so ask us what’s included.